Fluid system maintenance has long required the locking out of valves to prevent the unintentional operation of components within the system to safely perform work on that system. Oftentimes lockout devices are not available for the various configurations of valves presently made. This invention is used in instances where presently available lockout devices are not practical, desirable, or effective against the unintentional operation of a valve.
Several of the lockout devices previously invented require the removal of the valve handle such as the device in U.S. Pat. No. 7,870,767. U.S. Pat. No. 7,207,198 can be effective against valve operation, but can be complicated and timely to install. Many other devices available only lock a valve in a 90 degree position such as U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,003,797 and 6,718,804 which cannot perform a satisfactory lockout of a quarter turn valve in the 45 degree position. These devices also typically rely on the valve piping to provide device anchorage.
In order to meet governmental regulations, such as those mandated by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and to protect workers sufficiently from hazards posed by a poorly locked out valve, the present invention was created.